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Sample Scripture ReadingsThe Creation of Man and Woman (Genesis 1:26-28, 31a) God said, "Let us make man in our own image, in the likeness of ourselves, and let them be masters of the fish of the sea, the birds of heaven, the cattle, all the wild beasts and all the reptiles that crawl upon the earth." God created man in the image of himself, in the image of God he created him, male and female he created them. God blessed them, saying to them, "Be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth and conquer it. Be masters of the fish of the sea, the birds of heaven and all living animals on the earth." God saw all he had made, and indeed it was very good.

The Creation of Woman(Genesis 2:18-24) The Lord God said, "It is not good that the man should be alone. I will make him a helpmate." So from the soil the Lord God fashioned all the wild beasts and all the birds of the heaven. These he brought to the man to see what he would call them; each one was to bear the name the man would give it. The man gave names to all the cattle, all the birds of heaven and all the wild beats. But no helpmate suitable for man was found for him.

So the Lord God made the man fall into deep sleep. And while he slept, he took one of is ribs and enclosed it in flesh. The Lord God built the rib he had taken from the man into a woman, and brought her to the man. The man exclaimed: "This at last is bone from my bones, and flesh from my flesh! This is to be called woman, for this was taken from man." This is why a man leaves his father and mother and joins himself to his wife, and they become one body.

Prayer of the New Spouses(Tobit 8:4-9) Tobias rose up from the bed and said to Sarah, "Get up, my sister; you and I must pray and petition our Lord to win his grace and his protection." She stood up and they began praying for protection and this was how he began: "You are blessed, O God of our fathers; blessed, too, is your name for ever and ever. Let the heavens bless you and all things you have made for evermore. It was you who created Adam, you who created Eve his wife to be his help and support; and from these two the human race was born. It was you who said, 'It is not good that the man should be alone; let us make him a helpmate like himself.' And so I do not take my sister for any lustful motive; I do it in singleness of heart. Be kind enough to have pity on her and on me and bring us to old age together."

Love is as Strong as Death(Song of Songs 2:8-10, 14, 16a; 8:6-7a) A reading from the Song of Songs: I hear my BelovedSee how he comesleaping on the mountains,bounding over the hills,My Beloved is like a gazelle,like a young stag. See where he standsbehind our wall.He looks in at the window,he peers through the lattice. My Beloved lifts up his voice,he says to me,"Come then, my love,my lovely one, come. My dove, hiding in the clefts of the rock,in the coverts of the cliff,show me your face,let me hear your voice;for your voice is sweetand your fact is beautiful." My beloved is mind and I am his.He said to me: Set me like a seal on your heart,like a seal on your arm.For love is strong as Death,jealously relentless as Sheol.The flash of it is a flash of fire,a flame of the Lord himself. Love no flood can quench,no torrents drown.

A Really Good Wife and a Joyful Husband(Sirach 26:1-4; 16-21) A reading from the book of Sirach: Happy the husband of a really good wife;the number of his days will be doubled. A perfect wife is the joy of the husband,he will live out the years of his life in peace. A good wife is the best of portions,reserved for those who fear the Lord;rich or poor, they will be glad of heart,cheerful of face, whatever the season. The grace of a wife will charm her husband,her accomplishments will make him stronger.A silent wife is a gift from the Lord,no price can be put on a well-trained character. A modest wife is a boon twice over,a chaste character cannot be weighted on scales. Like the sun rising over the mountains of the Lordis the beauty of a good wife in a well-kept house.

The Love of Christ(Romans 8:31b-35, 37-39) With God on our side who can be against us? Since God did not spare his own Son, but gave him up to benefit us all, we may be certain, after such a gift, that he will not refuse anything he can give. Could anyone accuse those that God has chosen? When God acquits, could anyone condemn? Could Christ Jesus? No!! He not only died for us -- he rose from the dead, and there at God's right hand he stands and pleads for us. Nothing therefore can come between us and the love of Christ, even if we are troubled or worried, or being persecuted, or lacking food or clothes, or being threatened or even attacked. These are the trials through which we triumph, by the power of him who loved us. For I am certain of this; neither death nor life, no angel, no prince, nothing that exists, nothing still to come, not any power, or height or depth, nor any created thing can ever come between us and the love of God made visible in Christ Jesus our Lord.

The Greatest of These is Love(1 Corinthians 12:31-13:8a) Be ambitious for the higher gifts, and now I will show you a way that is better than any of them.

If I speak with human eloquence and that of angels as well, but speak without love, I am nothing more than a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal.

If I have the gift of prophecy, knowing and understanding all of life's mysteries -- and if I have faith great enough to move mountains; but am without love, I am nothing.

If I give away to the needy all that I possess, and if I even suffer martyrdom, but am without love, I gain nothing.

This love of which I speak is always patient and kind. It is never jealous. It is never boastful or conceited. It is never possessive or selfish. It does not take offense and is not resentful. It takes no pleasure in the failings of others, but rather delights only in the truth.

This love knows no limit to its endurance, no end to its trust, no fading to its hope. It will outlast anything. It is, in fact, the one thing that still stands when all else has fallen away. This love will not come to an end.

Live in Love and Thanksgiving(Colossians 3:12-17) A reading from the letter of Paul to the Colossians: You are God's chosen race, his saints; he loves you, and you should be clothed in sincere compassion, in kindness and humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with one another; forgive each other as soon as a quarrel begins. The Lord as forgiven you; now you must do the same. Over all these clothes, to keep them together and complete them, put on love. And may the peace of Christ reign in your hearts, because it is for this that you were called together as parts of one body. Always be thankful. Let the message of Christ, in all its richness, find a home with you. Teach each other, and advise each other, in all wisdom. With gratitude in your hearts sing psalms and hymns and inspired songs to God; and never say or do anything except in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

God is Love(I John 4::7-12) A reading from the first letter of John: My dear people, let us love one another since love comes from God and everyone who loves is begotten by God and knows God. Anyone who fails to love can never have known God, because God is love. God's love for us was revealed when God sent into the world his only Son so that we could have ave life through him; this is the love I mean: not our love for God, but God's love for us when he sent his Son to be the sacrifice that takes our sins away. My dear people, since God has loved us so much, we too should love one another. No one has ever seen God; but as long as we love one another God will live in us and his love will be complete in us.

What God Has United, Man Must Not Divide (Matthew 19:3-6) A reading from the holy gospel according to Matthew: Some Pharisees approached him, and to test him they said, "Is it against the Law for a Man to divorce his wife on any pretext whatever?" He answered, "Have you not read that the Creator from the beginning made them male and female and that he said, 'This is why a man must leave father and mother, and cling to his wife, and the two become one body?' They are no longer two, therefore, but one body. So then, what God has united, no human being may divide."

Love, the Greatest Commandment(Matthew 22:35-40) A reading from the holy gospel according to Matthew: To disconcert him, one of them put a question, Master, which is the greatest commandment of the Law? Jesus said, "You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all you soul, and with all your mind. This is the greatest and the first commandment. The second resembles it: You must love your neighbor as yourself. One these two commandments hand the whole Law and the Prophets also."

Remain in My Love(John 15:9-12) A reading from the holy gospel according to John. Jesus said to his disciples: "As the Father as loved me, so I have loved you. Remain in my love. If you keep my commandments you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father's commandments and remain in his love. I have told you this so that my own joy may be in you and your joy may be complete. This is my commandment: love one another as I have loved you."

Love One Another as I have Loved You(John 15: 12-16) Jesus said to his disciples: "This is my commandment: love one another as I have loved you. A man or woman can have no great love than to lay down one's own life for one's friends. You are my friends, if you do what I command you. I shall not call you servants any more, because a servant does not know his master's business; I call you friends, because I have made known to you everything I have learnt from my Father. You did not choose me, no, I chose you; and I commissioned you to go out and to bear fruit, fruit that will last; and then the Father will give you anything you ask him in my name." adapted from From St Paul to the EphesiansGive yourself to one another completely.Be generous in your giving and make no conditions for these gifts.Love one another constantly and fully.Be humble in your acceptance of your partner's love.Be honest with each other.Be thankful for each other's love and strive to develop its richness day by day.Respect each other in every way.Be patient with each other's weaknesses and accept each other for what you are, not what you wish one another to be.Communicate constantly with one another.Be calm, patient, tolerant and reasonable in your communication.Be capable of good listening.Share with one another misfortune and fortune alike.Be compassionate and express your love for one another constantly.Know your limitation and be honest with yourself as you are with one another.Fuse your souls into one another and be happy for the love you have been so fortunate to find in one another.